Third time turns out to be the charm for me. Didn’t much like the book-the first 75 pages turned me away twice. The first film version was better for me than the book since it did away with some of that early, boring stuff and offered a sensational performance by Noomi Rapace. But all in all, the second version of the film gets my vote.

PLOT: Does anyone need to read this? Probaby not. But briefly, elderly billionaire Henrik Vanger (Plummer) has suffered for years over the death of his beloved teenage niece in the sixties. As his death nears, he decides the crime must be solved. When it becomes inconvenient for journalist, Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) to stay at his desk in Stockholm, Vanger hires him to find out what happened forty years earlier.

Vanger and his Nazi-loving family live on their own island, each trying to hold on to their piece of the pie and barely civil to each other. Vanger has had Blomkvist investigated for this job by computer hacker extraordinaire, Lisbeth Sanger (Rooney Mara) who has problems of her own. She eventually joins Blomkvist to solve the crime. The film takes a lot of time bringing these two together as she wards off her guardian, evil incarnate. Those scenes are extraneous to the story but important to the trilogy and to the original title of the book MEN WHO HATE WOMEN.

Every scene in the film seemed perfectly framed for me, getting the most out of its characters. I found it satisfying not to have to read subtitles. I usually don’t mind sub-titles but find them at their worst in thrillers when you really want to be concentrating on what’s above them. I really admired Mara’s performance. She seemed to be a more fully realized character in this version-or at least some humor showed through, some softness. I thought Mara and Craig had more chemistry than in the earlier version too. The character of Blomkvist is a bit of a bore in all three versions, but at least they eliminated a very odd romance in this one. Anyway, it’s Lizbeth Salander that keeps us watching. She wears our hearts on her sleeve.

Highly recommended, if you can do it one more time.

Patti
Patti Abbott writes crime fiction short stories. She hosts a look at Forgotten Books every Friday with readers, writers and reviewers at http://www.pattinase.blogspot.com/ She hopes you’ll join in.

Please Share:

3 Comments

Mar31

Buddy Maisch

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a masterwork of fine craftsmanhip. When I reached the final page I was disappointed that there was no more to read. I did not want the story to end. The characters are too intriguing for this to be the end. Lisbet’s story would have made an incredible novel on its own. She has Aspergers and is trapped in an awful school /social system with no advocates and non-existent mental health services. It is really dark in its themes somewhat like the Kite Runner. The complex mystery, thriller aspects are really good, and then the whole other aspects of the novel which is also a social comment on society in Sweden, journalistic ethics, misogyny, and gut-wrenching sexual violence. So prepare to be disturbed by the darkness it depicts.

The book is a thriller on many levels: The story about the Vanger family itself, the journalist’s crusade to redeem his reputation, Lisabeth’s vendettas and development, and of course, the truth about what actually happened to the missing Vanger heiresss. This is a superb novel and impossible to put down.

Noomi Rapace’s performance is the reason to watch all three Swedish film versions of Stieg Larsson’s thrillers. I also enjoyed Mara’s performance. I hope director David Fincher agrees to make the other two films. SONY has green-lighted THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE and THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET’S NEST. They will probably be filmed together.

Jan20

Patti Abbott

I bet Fincher doesn’t do them. It will tie him up too long at the height of his career. Plus the second two are weaker stories.